The Vanishing Cabinet
by Tonks07
Summary: Draco has to mend the Vanishing Cabinet, but the Golden Trio seems to be catching on. What does Draco have to go through during his 6th year at Hogwarts? What does he have to endure while given a task that could lead to his most certain death?
1. The Room of Requirement - Chapter 1

_Harmonia Nectere Passus_ "

Draco whispered, eyes shut tightly.

" _Harmonia Nectere Passus.."_

He slowly opened his eyes and revealed the colorless grey in his eyes.

His breath became quicker as he placed his pale hand on the cabinet. He shut his eyes and tried again.

 _"Harmonia Nectere Passus"_

He took in a shaky breath

" _Harmonia Nectere Passus"_

Draco opened his eyes for the second time, to see the cabinet the exact same as it had been a few weeks before he had even come to Hogwarts.

Draco let out a small crying noise, but quickly regained composure.

He set his hand on his forehead, and tried to wipe away the tears he didn't want to form.

" _H-harmoni_ _a Necte-"_

Draco was in the middle of the spell, when he heard the room of requirement's door open. It was the unmistakable noise of a large stone wall slowly cracking in half. Draco took out his wand, and slipped under a large table covered in other sorts of assorted rubbish.

"Harry? Are you _sure_ he's in here?"

Said girlish voice Draco could Identify as the Granger girl.

"Positive."

It was Potter.

Potter, Weasley, and Granger were looking for something in here.

Draco had a hunch of what, or _who_ , they were looking for.

Draco scooted back further behind the desk, almost bumping into an old broken gargoyle and knocking it over.

"Harry, Really. I think this map is starting to become faulty. It's quite old.

"It's not, Hermione. Remember Peter Pettigrew? The map detects everything, and it's not ever wrong."

"Yes, well, he was supposed to be dead, wasn't he?"

Draco clasped his hand over his mouth when he saw the shoes belonging to Granger about 4 feet in front of him.

"Honestly,"

Weasley came up from behind her

"How do we not know Malfoy's dead already? Looks ill, he does."

He laughed at his own little joke.

"Now isn't time for joking, Ronald!"

Granger sounded agitated.

Weasley whispered something to Potter, but Draco couldn't quite make it out.

He saw the shoes of Weasley and Granger slowly disappear, but was greeted by a new pair. He recognized the white trainers which belonged to Potter.

He slowly walked around the table, and neared the cabinet. Draco held the wand cuadioudly in front of him, getting ready to hex Potter if he had any ideas. Potter held out his wand to the cabinet, and whispered a spell Draco couldn't hear. The cabinet swung open, and revealed the open, hollow inside. Potter seemed unfazed, and closed the cabinet door. He continued to walk, and followed after his friends. Draco made sure the three were gone, and slid out from under the table. He kept his wand in hand, and haistly walked out of the room of requirement. Draco reached sight of the door when he heard the familiar voices.

"I told you Harry! He isn't going to be in here! He's probably in the Slytherin dormitories!"

He saw the back of Granger's head, as she was facing Potter and Weasley.

"I'm telling you, Hermione. He's definitely in here, if can't just disappear out of Hogwarts. He probably heard us and left."

Draco didn't feel like sticking around to see how the rest of the confersation would end. He started to jog, making not much noise, and tried to make it to the door.

"Come on. Let's just go. We have Potions next anyway. He'll probably be there."

"Like that'll make anyone feel better.."

He heard their footsteps walking towards the door.

"Why would the sort like Malfoy come here anyway? Wouldn't he get help from all his croonies?"

"Maybe the thing Harry said he needed to mend is in here?"

Draco's heart started to beat faster. How did they know he needed to mend something? Had he said something on the train that Potter heard? Draco stopped running and dipped behind some shelves.

"Hold on Harry, check the map. If Malfoy's name isn't on the map, then he should still be in here."

"Brilliant Hermione! Brilliant!"

Draco heard shuffling of papers, and the incantation,

"I solemnly swear I am up to know good."

And more shuffling papers.

"Malfoy isn't on the map, and neither are we."

"Then he should still be in here.."


	2. The Room of Requirement - Chapter 2

" _Shut up!"_

He heard Granger hiss to Weasley.

"Malfoy's a bloody coward. He's probably run off by now. Besides, this place is huge. He could be anywhere."

Draco felt a sudden surge of anger flow through him, but he stayed behind the shelves regardless.

" _Revelio"_

He heard Granger murmur.

"He should be over here!"

He heard Granger's steps get closer and closer. Draco drew his wand and then quickly slid to the other side of the shelves. He looked around for a place to hide but couldn't see anything.

He saw Granger walk past the shelves and almost look directly at him.

" _Petrificus_ _Totalus" Draco whispered, and flung his wand toward Granger._

"Malfoy!"

He heard Potter and Weasley unified.

Draco sprinted as quickly as e could in the opposite direction. He heard spells flying, but from only one wand. He turned his head to see only Potter, Weasley was in the back with Granger.

" _STUPEFY!"_ He heard Potter hollar.

Draco dived out of the way and into a stack of books. He got up and held his side which felt heavily bruised. He didn't really want any of this to happen. He was scared of what would happen if they found him. He didn't mean it. But he kept running, and kept hearing shouts from Potter, and whizzing spells flying past him. His ribs hurt from how hard he was running. He wanted to lay on the ground and sleep like he hadn't been able to for weeks.

" _STUPEFY!"_ He heard Potter shout again.

This time, he tried to jump out f the way again, but the spell hit him square in the back, and he flew forward into a large stack of broken crystal balls. He held his bruised side and tried to force himself to get up, but he felt the piercing pain from the broken glass of the crystal balls.

He tried to get up, but before he could he saw Potter's wand directly over his face.

Draco reached into his side pocket.

"R-repello..." Draco mumbled.

Potter was sent flying backward a few feet. He saw Granger and Weasley walking towards him and helping up Potter.

Draco rolled onto the floor, sending the broken crystal balls down with him.

Draco lifted his wand above his head and pointed it at the stack of rubbish above them.

"Reducto." He said softly.

A pile of the rubbish exploded, causing the rest of the mountain to come crashing down toward the trio. He heard Granger scream, and Potter grabbed them and pushed all of them out of the way. Draco continued to lay on the floor. He lifted his head slightly and looked at his cut arms. There were pieces of glass sticking out of his black suit. He slumped his head back on the floor and closed his eyes.

"Ep- Episky."

He waved his wand around the places of the cuts and bruises, and felt them feel slightly better. He opened his eyes and heard blasting noises come from behind him. The trio were trying to blast their way through the barrier Draco had put between them. Draco got up slowly, and started running towards the exit.


	3. Myrtle's Bathroom - Chapter 3

It almost seemed like a flash.

It almost seemed like it didn't happen.

It did, though. Draco knew it.

Draco stumbled into the Slytherin common room, and luckily found it to be deserted. He sat on the couch and put his head in his hands.

" _I don't want to do this."_

He said to himself

" _It almost got me killed."_

He took a deep breath

" _This will get me killed."_

He lifted up his head and looked at the clock. 23 minutes until Potions. It's not like he cared anymore, but anything to get his mind off of this would make it better. Although, being in a room with Potter and his friends wouldn't help it much. He leaned back in the sofa and lifted up the side of his shirt. Side side and ribs were bruised, even with the healing spell, it didn't seem to do much. He let his shirt fall back down to his side, and rested his head back into his hands. Pansy Parkinson walked into the room with an abrupt noise.

"Hi, Draco." She said sitting herself by him. He quickly looked up and sat up straight. "Hello, Pansy. Shouldn't you be in arthricmacy?"

Pansy gave a girlish laugh.

"Of course I should. But once the Dark Lord is in power, is he _really_ going to care what grade we get with some numbers? I doubt so."

She kicked her feet up on the table and leaned back into Draco's arm.

"What were you saying about.. Bigger and better things?"

Draco's heart started to race.

"Pansy, I admire how much you think highly of me, but I should start getting ready for class.. I have an exam, and I'll be sure to tell you later."

Draco got up and took Pansy's hand.

"Promise?" Pansy said questionably

"Promise." Draco said letting go of her hand and walking to the boy's dormitories.

He stopped on the stairs and turned around to see Pansy Parkinson smiling to herself, and proudly leaving the common room. Draco slumped on the steps and sat down. He wanted a place where nobody could bother him, and no one would intrude on him like how Potter and his friends had. Like how Pansy had. He needed a place where nobody went, and nobody would go there by choice.

Draco sat up, threw on his school robes, and went to his potions class.

The class was full of the same thing. Slughorn, favoring Potter and Granger. The sight of it made Draco sick. He just longed for someone to favor him for once. He was just hoping to make one outstanding potion, and Slughorn boasted about Draco infront of the whole class. Of course, the probability of that was extremely slim. He knew Slughorn wouldn't because of his parents. But that's out of Draco's own control, isn't it? After the class, he could tell Potter was trying to follow him, and he couldn't make it anymore obvious. The whole, 'trying to get out of sight from his friends to put on his invisibility cloak'. It was almost as thought they found Draco to be rather stupid. But he wasn't. He knew Potter suspected he was a Death Eater. He also knew that he was the reason Blaise couldn't close the door to the train. He sighed and while Potter was trying to distract his friends to slip on his cloak, Draco dashed up the stairs, taking 3 at a time, and running into the girl's bathroom. He slowly closed the door, and then leaned against it.

"Oho?"

A wispy voice said.

Draco looked up and saw a ghost of a girl, he presumed to be Moaning Myrtle.

"M-Myrtle? Right?"

He said shakily.

The girl looked at him questionably.

"Your name. It's Myrtle?" He said again

"Well, yes, I believe I know what my name is." She said with angst.

"The real question is, what is _your_ name? And why are you in the girl's bathroom?"

Draco looked around, and saw that the place was completely empty.

Before he answered, he started to briskly walk around, and open each of the stalls, hoping each time he opened it, there wasn't a 1st year using a stall.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Myrtle said almost ear piercingly.

"Well, I had to make sure no one else was in here. Hadn't I?"

Myrtle let out a deafening cry

"Well, no one _ever_ comes in here anymore. Ever since I moved in."

She let out another cry, and crashed into Draco, making him almost lose balance, and fall over.

"Now tell me. We've had enough icebreakers to get to know each other. What is your name?"

Draco looked around, convinced no one was hiding anywhere.

"Malfoy." He said sort of quietly.

"Draco Malfoy."

"Oho?"

She said

"A Malfoy. In my bathroom?"

She flew closer to him to the point where it became sort of uncomfortable.

"Well, er. Yes. I am a Malfoy.. And I guess I'm in your bathroom."

She made a high pitched giggly noise.

"Well, your always welcome in."

He made a forced half smile.

"Uh.. Thank you Myrtle.."

She laughed again

"I can tell you wanted some time alone.. I'll leave you be."

She paused

"For awhile."

She laughed another high pitched giggly laugh, and flew up and over into a broken, flooded toilet.

Draco jogged over to the stall and peeked in.

She wasn't in there.

He finally had some time alone, as long as Potter didn't come in and have to ruin everything.

He went over to the sinks and leaned on them. He noticed a small snake on one of the sinks, and touched it. He didn't pay it any other attention when he heard another deafening shriek. Myrtle flew out of the toilet and above him.

"Careful, Draco."

She said in a whisper.

"The last time someone went in there, one of them had lost their memory."

Draco looked at her confusedly, but took his hand off of the sink.

She flew over him and looked down.

"I can tell somethings on your mind. One thing about being confined to one part of the castle makes you know when someone isn't feeling the best. Especially when you're the one sitting alone in a bathroom, crying."

This made Draco kind of feel pity for her. The kind of pity he feels for Potter. The pity he feels when he knows what Potter doesn't, and what Potter will have to endure one of these days. He longed to tell them, but he knew that they would first try to hex him before he could even get a word in.

"Well Myrtle, I guess we can both sit in this bathroom, together, crying."

Draco gave a smile to her, but this time, it wasn't so forced.


	4. Myrtle's Bathroom - Chapter 4

Draco sat alone in the Slytherin common room. It's been a few months since the arrival to Hogwarts, and Draco hasn't made any progress on the vanishing cabinet. Draco was trying to focus on his Defense Against the Dark Arts homework, but he couldn't focus. He was learning how to do non-speaking spells, and he was seeming to get the hang of it. He was more focused on how to do actual defensive spells without talking, rather than offensive. He knew his Auntie Bella wouldn't approve of that, but at the rate of Potter and his friends on his tail, it felt like he needed to protect himself more than hurting the trio. Draco set down his quill, and looked around the common room. The fire glowed in front of him, giving light to the dark, gloomy room. The Slytherin common room has been seeming more gloomy everyday since last year. Even Draco has felt the changes. Not in just the Slytherin common room, but the whole castle. It feels colder, and more protected. Probably from people like him who have been forced to do something completely out of their hands, causing anxiety, and not wanting to have to do any of this horrible stuff in the first place. Draco knew it was because of his father. He knew that he himself would have to do this because it was his father's punishment for getting put into Azkaban. But why him? Why did it have to be him? Why not Blaise? Or Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, anyone, really? Why couldn't they get a trustworthy Gryffindor to do it for him, and then nobody would be able to suspect them? Why did it have to be him, who was out of most everyone, the most suspicious to Potter? If he were to get caught, he would be killed. And he can't tell anyone about this, because he didn't want anyone to think he was a weak, coward, like everyone in Gryffindor already did. He got his anxious feeling, and went to the only place he felt like he could go and actually tell someone what's wrong.

He got up and walked out of the common room.

"Draco? Is that you?"

The same wispy voice answered.

"Yes Myrtle. It's me." Draco turned around and shut the door softly.

"Is something the matter? Oh do tell." She said in a sweet voice hovering over him slightly.

"Its nothing.. Horrible. Just the normal sad Malfoy problems."

Myrtle gave the same ear splitting giggle.

"Come on Draco." She said floating away and motioning for him to follow her.

"You can tell me. Who else cries in a bathroom?"

Draco nodded slightly

"Fair Point."

He sat on the edge of a slightly broken stall that nobody had bothered to fix.

"Well... I guess it's just the same as it had been for a while now... I just.. I just don't know how to fix the.. The thing."

Draco felt his neck burn when Myrtle flew behind him.

"Oho? I don't know what the thing you have to fix is? You always refer to it as 'The thing"

She flew back in front of him.

"You'll have to be more descriptive, dear."

Draco looked up from the floor at looked at her. It gave him this sort of chilling feeling, though.

"A Cabinet. It's a cabinet."

He looked back at the floor, and moved his feet nervously.

"A cabinet huh? Why do you need to repair it? Broken door hinges? Does it squeak too loud when it closes? My old closet door used to do that. My mother didn't know how to fix it either. She wasn't sure what to do. Maybe you're in the same position as her?"

Draco doubted he was in the same position at her at all.

"Couldn't she just cast a spell on it?"

Draco said shifting awkwardly in his seat.

"No. She's a muggle."

Draco looked up a her.

"And. Your father?"

"Muggle as well."

He looked back down quickly.

She was a muggleborn.

A mudblood.

He didn't care that much anymore, though.

He had been so cruel to people like Myrtle. Like Granger, and countless others. He couldn't blame it on his parents, though. It had been his own fault for believing their prejudice ways. He may not be able to bond ways with Granger and those other muggleborns, but he could start by being kind to Myrtle.

"Oh. Alright."

Draco said simply.

"Oho? I thought you were going to call me a _mudblood_?"

Myrtle said the last word with a darker tone.

"Well. I guess I shouldn't call you one. Nasty word, it is."

Myrtle smiled down at him and Draco gave a half smile back.

"Why can't you just cast a spell on your cabinet, Draco? I know you're not a muggle."

Draco looked at the floor and kicked a loose piece of the marble floor.

"Yeah, well. I've tried, see. That's the whole thing. Why I'm so frustrated. It just wont mend."

Myrtle flied around the room whispering something to herself.

"Have you tried a simple mending spell?"

She said looking over at him.

"Believe me. I have. And besides, there's only one certain spell to mend this type of cabinet. And, it's not working."

Draco stood up and looked around.

"I don't know how I'm going to do this Myrtle."

Myrtle flew closer to him.

"Why are you so set on fixing this simple little cabinet?"

"You don't understand Myrtle. This cabinet. It's my only hope."

Myrtle looked down at him, and flew slightly closer.

"Why? What do you mean?"

"This cabinet. It's not just _a_ cabinet. There's a twin."

He crumpled to the floor.

"I have to let _them_ in."

"Draco.." Myrtle said softly.

"Or he's gonna kill me."


	5. Chapter 5 - Myrtle's Promise

Draco was miserable in his potions class. Not only did he have more important things to be doing at the moment, he felt like Potter had been staring at him this whole time. He was trying to make a potion in which Slughorn deemed acceptable, but it never seemed like that would happen no matter what Draco did. He irritably watched Slughorn stride briskly over to Potter, and give him the old, "Well done m'boy, well done!" Draco sneered and tried to focus back on his own potion, although he could've been working on the vanishing cabinet by now. Draco gave his potion a counter-clockwise stir with his wand, and it turned a dark purple colour, although the instructions said for the potion to turn a light blue. He swore under his breath and looked over at the other table, where, Potter was happily stirring his potion and adding what seemed to be ingredients that weren't in the book at all. He was Weasley and Granger looking almost as puzzled as Draco felt. He rubbed the back of his head, and tried to make his potion the dark purple colour. As Slughorn passes his cauldron, he merely peeked inside and continued to walk on. He gave a small sigh, and tried to fix his potion. Once the bell had rang, Draco gave no hesitation, and jolted out of the room as quickly as he could. He practically flew to the common room, and threw everything onto his bed. He had a free period now, so he would have time for the cabinet. He sat on his bed, and leaned his head in his hands, taking in a deep breath. He had no idea what to do, or how he was going to be able to do this.

This was no doubt, a suicide mission, and Draco knew it.

He got up off of his bed, and quickly moved to the Room of Requirement, not even waiting for Crabbe and Goyle to be his lookouts. He walked in front of the solid wall, and thought,

" _I need a way to accomplish my ambitions."_

He opened his eyes, and the solid wall was slowly turning into the door. Draco slipped inside, and started walking to the cabinet.

He heard voices, and Draco took out his wand, and dipped underneath a stack of crates.

"So.. This is it huh?"

He heard a voice ring

"I believe. I guess everyone throws there rubbish in here."

The two voices exchanged a laugh.

A few clanging and breaking noises could be heard.

"So that Potter really thinks a Malfoy is doing something dangerous in here? There's so much stuff I couldn't find an Inferi in here..."

Draco's face turned pale.

Potter really did suspect Draco, and has been telling people about it. Could these be aurors? If people found out, Draco would surely be killed over it.

The conversation was getting farther and farther away.

"... Investigation on the Malfoy boy..."

"... Wasting valuable time..."

"... The Chosen one..."

He heard another ringing of laughter, and the footsteps led farther away towards the cabinet.

Draco clenched his breath, and ran from the room as fast as he could. He ran to the only place he really thought he could be safe and talk to anyone.

"Myrtle?" Draco said busting into the girl's bathroom.

"Oho?" A wispy voice said coming from the toilet.

Draco walked over to the stall, still slightly out of breath.

"I-it.. It's me, Myrtle. Draco.. I told you I'd try to come and visit every once and a while."

A large splash came from the toilet, getting the bottoms of Draco's pants wet.

"Oho... I was hoping it was you. Most people when they visit me, they don't come back.. Like Harry Potter and his friends."

"You know Potter" Draco said trying to dry his pants

"Well of course, in his second year they were making polyjuice potion in my bathroom, you know."

Draco looked up at Myrtle, who was slowly moving about the bathroom

"Have you seen them? Recently, I mean." Draco responded trying to hide the fear out from his voice.

"Why, not so recently... The last time I saw him was two years ago." She let out a sheepish cry, and flew towards Draco.

"But see, you've been so nice to me, and I'm not sure why." She looked at him with large puppy dog eyes

"I-I... I just don't feel like I have anyone to talk to, really. But you. You always listen, and let me talk, and I don't feel lonely or scared with you."

Myrtle laughed an odd high-pitched girly giggle

"How sweet... Well, you're always welcome to share my toilet."

Draco gave a forced smile

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Feeling slightly better, although the fact that aurors still might know he's up to something, he stopped before leaving and turned around.

"You promise you won't tell anyone I was here, right Myrtle? Not my name, not a description about me, not anything, right?"

Myrtle floated closer to him. "Of course I promise. Cross my heart and hope to die."

Draco smiled, but in his head he didn't really think that meant anything since she was already dead.

He simply turned, and walked out.


	6. Chapter 6 - Finding a way

Draco walked back to the common room, rubbing his knuckles, and glancing about the halls. It was almost nightfall, and being caught by filch (again,) would only lead into more unneeded trouble. Once he neared a corner, he glanced back and forth and was hit by nothing he could see.

He quickly stumbled upwards, and his hand flipped to his wand. He pulled it out and looked around for the possible trace of anyone.

"Revelio" He muttered, and he could see the faint outline of a body sprinting down the halls.

Draco dashed after this person, knowing it could only be Potter, the one with an invisibility cloak. He wasn't going to let him get away so fast this time, especially with all he had done to him the last time they had been in the Room of Requirement together. He continued to sprint down the halls, until he saw the person emerge from under the cloak. It was indeed, as he suspected, Potter. His hand on his wand, and he pointed it directly towards him.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Potter said in a loud whisper.

Draco rolled out of the way to one side, and having already gotten the basics of saying the spells inside your own head, thought as hard as he could,

" _Repello!"_ And Potter was blown a few feet backwards onto his back. This gave Draco enough time to stand up and steady himself.

"Stupefy!" Potter had run a few feet as Draco was blown backwards, hitting the nearest wall. He felt the bruise that had been there previously been greeted by a few new bruises. He struggled to get up, but by the time he had gotten back up, Potter had gone.

"And they say I'm the coward..." Draco murmured brushing himself off.

He rubbed his sore back, and realized why Potter had decided to rush off. Filch was roaming the halls along with Snape, who had seemed to be having a very heated conversation.

"...Lock the doors next time." Said the undeniable voice of Snape

"Well, maybe you should control your students. Potter's last class is with you, isn't it?"

"No, Filch. He actually is my 5th class of the day."

The rest of the conversation was drowned out by a loud screeching noise. Draco covered his ears and looked up. Peeves was floating above Draco, with a device that somehow made Peeves louder than he already was. The same loud screech happened again, and he heard Snape's footsteps coming just around the corner.

"Draco." Snape said simply.

"Snape." Draco said wearily.

"Look, I know I'm in trouble, give me detention or something, don't lecture me. I'm honestly not in the mood."

Snape glared at him

"We both know I'm not going to be doing that, _and would you shut up?_ " He said to Peeves who was still annoyingly screeching above them.

"This is the 4th time I've caught you wandering around after nightfall, and you might end up getting yourself killed."

"Oh why, because I'm going to fail this mission, and then _he's_ gonna be all scary and kill me?" He said in a mocking voice.

" _Don't_ talk like that. At least I wouldn't if I still wanted to be able to talk."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Please sir." He sighed. "Just let me go. I know what I'm supposed to be doing now. I'm trying the best I can, and I don't need any help."

Snape backed up from Draco.

"Very well. If you'd like help, you always know where to find me."

"I won't. But I suppose if I become that desperate I always could."

He glared up at Snape, and they both turned away from each other. Draco hurried down to the common room, and once he was there, he sat on the couch by the fire, and tried to relax the bruised part of his back.

" _I don't need protection."_ He said to himself.

 _"Out of all others, me. I was chosen."_

 _"I'm able to do this all on my own. He gave me this assignment, and I'm going to be the one to do it."_

He closed his eyes, and covered his face.

"I'm not going to be able to do this." He put his feet up on the table, and watched the fire burn away at the logs slowly.

The fire worked away at the logs, slowly, and carefully.

The fire wouldn't be able to consume the logs all at once, but one day, the logs would be gone, and the fire wouldn't completed it's task.

The fire would take at least a year to burn all the way.

But Draco didn't have at least a year

He had less than half of a year left.

He needed the fire to burn quicker, but in a way that he was sure it could work.

He closed his eyes again and listen to the soft noise of the crackling fire.

He would have to find a way to ignite the fire and cause the flames to burn more.

He didn't know how to ignite it, though.

He didn't have a way,

He was alone.

He'd end up finding a way,

He wasn't entirely alone.


End file.
